The year is 1997. The place; the Club de Golf Valderrama, near Sotogrande on Spain’s southern Mediterranean coast. The 25^th Ryder Cup is being played outside Great Britain for the first time, with the European team under the captaincy of the legendary Severiano Ballesteros. The result; Europe wins with 14.5 points against the USA´s 13.5, despite the fact that Valderrama was almost washed out due to the heavy rain that closed all other courses within a radius of 200 miles for at least 24 hours! However, even the unusually inclement weather couldn’t dampen the incredible atmosphere during those momentous days for European, and more importantly, Spanish golf. The event signalled the birth of an unprecedented golfing boom on the Costa del Sol, which was subsequently to be re-titled the ´Costa del Golf´. The sobriquet was not given without good reason; the Costa del Sol certainly is a golfer’s paradise. Yet, it is only one, albeit important, part of the Andalucian golfing story.

With the best climate in Europe for year-round golf (averaging over 300 days of sunshine each year coupled with enough rainfall to keep courses green and lush) 60-plus golf courses within 2 hours drive from Malaga International Airport; 120 courses in total, including four of Europe´s top ten tracks; and, best of all, a welcome for visiting golfers like no other they will have experienced – to play golf in Andalucia is to play in golfing heaven!

Since 1997, the region has become a ´must-play´ golfing destination, especially for thousands of northern Europeans. It is easy to see why! Golfers who were accustomed to playing golf in the cold, wet winters of UK, Ireland and Scandinavia (always assuming the courses were open and it was light enough to see their golf-balls after their tee shots) have very quickly come to appreciate what a real luxury it is to play in Andalucia on a winter’s day. The sun shining warmly overhead; the sea and mountains providing often quite breathtaking backdrops and a choice of courses second to none. An unbeatable combination!

The Golf Courses.
Special attention must first of all be given to the jewel in the Andalucian golfing crown - the almost aristocratic Club de Golf, Valderrama - which this year celebrates its 20th anniversary in style, as the Volvo Masters commemorates the longest-running sponsorship on the European pro tour. The tournament is to be played 1st to 4th November 2007. Find more details on www.volvomasters.com .

Whilst perhaps out of reach price-wise for some visitors, Valderrama should, if at all possible, be played once, if only for the souvenir value of talking about the experience once back at your own home course. For it truly is an experience and so much more than just another round of golf in the sun! (After all, you would be hard pressed to describe either the Pyramids at Giza or the Taj Mahal as merely just another tourist attraction!)

From the moment you arrive in the car park (no changing footwear here!) you are treated as golfing royalty; as close as most amateurs will ever get to feeling like a tour professional. Golf bags are whisked away to be positioned, together with your chosen form of golfing transport, on the practice ground, where 24 brand new Titleist balls - arranged into perfect pyramids - await your pleasure; your shoes are cleaned and polished before and after the round, and the trip to the first tee would not be complete without at least a half dozen putts on the green slab of polished marble which doubles as the practice putting green outside the clubhouse restaurant.

Your start time is determined only by the players in front having completely cleared the first green, after which you will probably never see them, or another soul, for the rest of your idyllic, if admittedly somewhat pricey, round. If you have to, forget your score (but not your camera) and just enjoy the scenery, the memories of the Ryder Cup in ´97 and the fact that your partners in next Saturday´s four-ball will be so envious that you just might take the money and recoup some of your green-fee!

	Club de Golf Valderrama host to the 1997 Ryder Cup and the Volvo Masters Andalucía 2002- 2006. Ranked number one in Continental Europe, this legendary golf course is simply immaculate and completely justifies its excellent international reputation.
The other Costa del Sol courses are too numerous to describe each one individually, and specific course details can be found by visiting www.fga.org However, there are one or two which merit special attention, due either to their special location or circumstances.
	La Cala Resort is one of the most exclusive golf resorts in Southern Europe, with three superb 18-hole golf courses and the only ´David Leadbetter´ Golf Academy in Spain. The course designer, Cabell Robinson, took into account the natural contours of the location when creating these three courses. The Campo Asia, par 72, the Campo America, par 73 and the Campo Europa, par 71, are always beautifully maintained to ensure year-round play.
	Santana Golf and Country Club is situated right next door to La Cala Resort. The beautiful layout takes in groves of oranges and avocados, and offers breathtaking views of the Mijas Mountains. With just a hint of the ´Augusta National´ about it, Santana is truly a place where ‘nature and golf are one’. It is worth every penny of the green fee and remains my personal favourite on the coast.
	Alhaurin Golf is located outside the white village of Alhaurín el Grande just behind the Mijas Mountains. With distant views of the Mediterranean Sea, this is an enjoyable, if challenging, course where all holes are different and players can get a sense of the vastness of their surroundings.
	Alcaidesa Links Golf Club, opened in 1992, is the only links course in Andalucia. It offers players an unforgettable experience, with spectacular backdrops difficult to equal anywhere else - Gibraltar Rock being visible on almost every hole! It is suited to golfers of all handicaps.
	Monte Mayor Golf is perhaps one of Andalucia’s most ruggedly spectacular golf courses, and is definitely not for the faint-hearted! Nestling in the mountains of Benahavis behind Marbella, the course has six bridges linking tees, fairways and greens and is ideal for the golfer who likes to play ´risk & reward´ golf. You may be deafened by the silence as you play this remarkable course!
	Cabopino Golf, par 71, is a modern course designed to take advantage of incredible 180 degree sea views. Easily accessible just off the N340/A7 coast road between Marbella and Fuengirola. The 3rd and 14th (pictured above) are the signature holes on this most enjoyable course.
	Añoreta Golf, just to the east of Malaga, is a course to suit players of every ability; quite demanding from the first tee but with easy-going fairways and fast rolling greens, some of which are well protected by bunkers and water hazards.
Finca Cortesín Golf Club, near the pretty mountain village of Casares offers views over the Mediterranean and the African coastline from every angle, and there are no houses interfering with either the panorama or your game! Par 72, the course measures almost 7 km from the back tees, making it one of the Europe´s longest. It has a huge variety of natural vegetation, including olive trees and corks, and each of the 18 holes is completely different which makes playing the course very enjoyable. The greens at Finca Cortesín are like jewels, each with a slight break and extremely fast.
	Flamingos Golf, near Marbella, has become the host to the European Seniors Tour Matchplay event. The course offers breath-taking views of the Mediterranean Sea and Africa. Cypress, orange, olive, pine, carob, chestnut and pomegranate trees populate each hole, and the course itself has great variety in its layout, with large, undulating greens.
Any golfing trip to Andalucia would these days be incomplete without including at least one of the courses situated on the Costa del la Luz (Cadiz). The area has an ever-increasing number of excellent new golf courses to suit all levels of players and many are set in some equally beautiful, yet very different, Andalucian settings.
Cadiz province has recently become a burgeoning golfing destination, with its cooler summer climate and equally reliable, though possibly slightly wetter, winter weather. Not that many years ago, there was a definite vacuum between Cadiz’s Atlantic coast and the golfing hotbed of Sotogrande. Now, thanks to the excellent Benalup course at Medina Sidonia and the superb, soon to be extended, Dehesa de Montenmedio complex at Vejer, visitors following ´la ruta de los toros´ (route of the bulls) can be sure to add some special golfing experiences along the way. Other Cadiz courses also worth a mention are Costa Ballena, Novo Sancti Petri and Golf El Puerto in Santa Maria.
	Dehesa Montenmedio, just outside the lovely village of Vejer near Cadiz, has 18 beautiful holes with wide, tailored fairways, bordered by woodland and forest. Considered by many golfers to be one of Europe’s finest courses, the beauty of the countryside combines with spectacular views of both the mountains of Cadiz and the Straits of Gibraltar and Africa, and the course is virtually free of any construction work! Two more courses are planned for the complex.
	Benalup Golf offers superb views over the “La Janda” valley and the “Los Alcornocales” natural park. Numbers of players per day are strictly controlled, such that enjoyment is maximized, and the all-inclusive green fee makes Benalup unique in Andalucia (price includes breakfast, refreshments on the course, a 3-course lunch and drinks.)
	Costa Ballena Golf is a 27-hole golf course with 9 par threes. A pleasant, eminently walkable course; which runs along the more exposed, Atlantic coastline of Andalucia.
Inland courses, such as the excellent Real Club de Golf, Sevilla and the former home of the Volvo masters event, MonteCastillo (designed by Jack Nicklaus) adjacent to the F1 circuit at Jerez, are perhaps less well known to the northern European golfing visitors, but will nevertheless offer challenging golf on mature courses, usually in immaculate surroundings and with a real sense of golfing tradition, which few of the coastal courses can provide.
	Real Club de Golf de Sevilla, was the venue for the World Cup of Golf in 2004, and is undoubtedly one of the top courses in both Spain and Europe. Designed by José María Olazábal, this mature and elegant course presents a stiff challenge to golfers of all levels with its wide fairways and numerous bunkers.
	Desert Springs (Indiana course), further north in Almeria, is Europe’s first and only desert course. Built to full USGA specifications, every hole has unique features including springs, watercourses, dry river beds and rock and cacti areas - all thoughtfully located to be brought into play and testing the skills of even the best players when playing off the white tees.
Finally, to the far west of Andalucia, the province of Huelva may be the new kid on the golfing block, yet it already offers some exquisite courses for those golfing visionaries looking for something off the beaten track. Golfers who may have previously by-passed the area en route to Portugal may wish to reconsider their choice of venues in future as Huelva has some real hidden gems – and the reknowned seafood isn´t half bad either!
	Islantilla Golf was completed in 1992 and has quickly become one of the best Spanish golf courses, being placed among Europe´s top 100 courses by Golf Digest magazine in 2000. 27 holes on three different courses are surrounded by leafy vegetation coupled with impressive sea-views. The careful design of the greens and fairways gives the course great quality and variety.

El Rompido South course hosted the 2004 & 2005 finals of the national Daily Mail Foursomes. Both challenging and beautiful, the course is spread across an unusual mix of terrain, resulting in some amazing views. The trip between the 8th green and the 9th tee crosses a 650ft pontoon over protected marshland where you may see freshwater crabs and an abundance of bird life. El Rompido is being hotly tipped to host many more national and international tournaments in the future.

Dunas de Doñana golf course is situated close to Europe’s most important natural park, El Coto de Doñana, and just yards from the Atlantic Ocean. A design incorporating a combination of styles makes the course an unforgettable experience for golfers of all levels. Easily walkable. A visit to the nearby village of El Rocio, with its streets of sand, is a must for any visitor to the area.

If golf is your thing, then Andalucia delivers…in spades! Over 2 million golfers each year choose to come and play the courses in this most southerly part of Spain. Recent years have seen vast improvements in the transport infrastructure with both the road networks and Malaga airport having been significantly improved. In addition, the low-cost airlines have secured many more routes into Seville, Granada and Jerez, offering improved access for the golfing visitor through a greater choice of flights at very reasonable rates. Even Gibraltar has recently increased the number of regular flights, and the restrictions flying to and from Spain have also been lifted. The AVE train system between Malaga and Madrid, due in 2008, will further enhance accessibility to the region. Getting around Andalucia has never been easier!

So, whatever your level – from experienced single figure handicapper to raw beginner - there are courses throughout Andalucia to suit all tastes, budgets, playing standards and individual or group requirements. The weather seldom disappoints. But, don´t be disappointed! Remember during the high season (October to May/June) to ensure your chosen course is available and book your tee off times in advance of your trip whenever possible.

One of the most experienced and trusted golf holiday companies on the Costa del Sol is Sunshine Golf. They have been in business for over 12 years and specialise in green fees and holiday packages (including car hire) for golfers. For information and bookings, contact their office in La Cala de Mijas - call 0034 952494161 or send an e-mail to reservations@sunshine-golf.com (web site at www.sunshine-golf.com )

You´ll be welcome in Andalucia – truly a golfers paradise!